Section 9. Energy prices

Monthly Energy Review, May, 2004

Crude Oil. The average price of domestic crude oil at the wellhead was $31.21 per barrel in February 2004, 2 percent below the level of February 2003. The refiner acquisition cost of imported crude oil in February 2004 was $30.80 per barrel, 5 percent lower than the February 2003 level. The average cost of domestic crude oil in February 2004 was $33.24,2 percent less than the February 2003 average.

Motor Gasoline. The national city average retail price of unleaded regular gasoline at all types of stations was $1.77 per gallon in March 2004, 1 percent higher than the price in March 2003. The price of unleaded premium gasoline averaged $1.95 in March 2004, 1 percent higher than the price in March 2003.

Residual Fuel Oil. The average price, excluding taxes, of residual fuel oil sold to end users in February 2004 was 70 cents per gallon, 2 percent lower than the previous month's price and 16 percent lower than the February 2003 average. The average resale price, excluding taxes, of residual fuel oil in February 2004 was 70 cents, 1 percent higher than the January 2004 price but 19 percent lower than the price 1 year earlier.

Aviation Fuel. The average price, excluding taxes, of kerosene-type jet fuel sold to end users in February 2004 was $1.01 per gallon, 2 percent higher than the previous month's average price but slightly less than the February 2003 average price.

No. 2 Distillate Fuel Oil. The February 2004 national average price, excluding taxes, of heating oil sold to residential customers was $1.43 per gallon, 1 percent higher than the January 2004 price but 5 percent lower than the February 2003 price. The average price of No. 2 fuel oil sold to all end users was 99 cents per gallon in February 2004, 3 percent lower than the January 2004 price and 12 percent lower than the price 1 year earlier.

Electricity. The average retail price of electricity sold to all ultimate consumers in the United States in December 2003 (latest month for which data are available) was 7.15 cents per kilowatthour, 2 percent higher than the average price in December 2002. The price of electricity sold to residential consumers in December 2003 averaged 8.34 cents per kilowatthour, 3 percent higher than the December 2002 price. The price of electricity sold to commercial consumers averaged 7.80 cents per kilowatthour in December 2003, 2 percent higher than the December 2002 price. The price of electricity sold to other consumers was 6.64 cents per kilowatthour, 4 percent lower than the December 2002 price. The price of electricity sold to industrial users in December 2003 averaged 4.78 cents per kilowatthour, 1 percent higher than the price 1 year earlier.

Beginning with January 1986, new series of national average price estimates were based on a statistically derived sample of both publicly and privately owned electric utilities. Previously, average price estimates were derived from selected privately owned electric utilities and were not national averages.

Natural Gas. The average wellhead price of natural gas for January 2004 (latest month for which data are available) was estimated as $5.53 per thousand cubic feet, 24 percent higher than the January 2003 price.

The average price of natural gas delivered to the electric power sector was $4.67 per thousand cubic feet in November 2003 (latest month for which data are available), 7 percent higher than the November 2002 price. The average price of natural gas used by residential consumers in January 2004 was $9.59 per thousand cubic feet, 19 percent higher than the January 2003 price. The average price of natural gas used by commercial consumers in January 2004 was $8.82 per thousand cubic feet, 20 percent higher than the January 2003 price. The average price of natural gas used by industrial consumers in January 2004 was $6.56 per thousand cubic feet, 18 percent above the January 2003 price.

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